Deputies were serving a search warrant for suspected stolen property when they found the drugs in an undisclosed room in Mayfield's home.

Officers also seized a "large amount of stolen goods" from buildings and trailers.

Detectives say some of the stolen items recovered belonged to Lee Family Real Estate LTD and included heavy equipment parts, scrap metal, welders and welding accessories, and other heavy equipment items.

Other items belonged to Larry Grant Inc. and included various truck parts, an engraving machine, truck mirrors and electric motor controllers.

Lincoln County Sheriff David Carpenter said the items were stolen from November 2010-January 2011. Combined, the items are valued at $100,000, Carpenter said.

Officers also seized 69 firearms during the search, said Catawba County Sheriff’s Office Capt. Joel Fish. The guns, which included rifles, pistols and shotguns, are being held during the investigation, Fish said.

Mayfield was arrested without incident on Tuesday and was taken to the Catawba County Detention Center in Newton. He was charged with felony possession of methamphetamine and released after posting a $3,000 bond.

Mayfield has not been charged in relation to the seized equipment or firearms, and some of the stolen items have been handed over to the District 25 Attorney's Office for further investigation, Fish said.

Additional charges against Mayfield may surface as the investigation of the stolen equipment and seized guns continues, Fish said.

Fish said deputies were serving the warrant at Mayfield’s residence after receiving tips from the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office and the Mooresville Police Department that the former driver was harboring stolen goods.

“They were searching for other things and found (the methamphetamine),” Fish said. “It started earlier in the afternoon and they were out there for a few hours.”

History of trouble

The former Sprint Cup driver was suspended from NASCAR in May 2009 after failing a random drug test. Mayfield denied he was using an illegal drug, but NASCAR said he tested positive for methamphetamine.

In unsuccessful legal challenges to his suspension, Mayfield said his positive test stemmed from a mix of an over-the-counter allergy medication and the prescription drug Adderall.

Most recently, five of Mayfield’s dogs attacked a postal worker on April 21 on his property. Catawba Post Office worker Mary Bolton was delivering a package to his front door when she was attacked and bit by five pit bull/Labrador retriever mix dogs that left her hospitalized with wounds throughout her body.